2022 Charity Support
England Shelter UK
Shelter England support those who are at risk of Homelessness. Norwich like all other major cities finds itself with a number of rough sleepers. We have made Shelter our end of 2022 charity due to the support they provide via their 1:1 advice and support services helping with housing advice and homelessness. Blend like Shelter sees a HOME as basic human right. In the UK we struggle with the knowledge that locally many adults remain homeless and without a secure roof over their head.
The Feed is a social enterprise based in Norwich with a mission to motivate change in people to prevent poverty, hunger and homelessness. Everything they do works towards a vision of ‘a community free from poverty’
Blend supports The Feed by using them as a supplier for staff face to face events. We are increasingly aware of the huge cost of living crisis facing many families including the NHS staff of the organisations we support. This triple challenge of food, fuel and housing increased costs is leading more people into poverty and needing the support of The Feed. As part of our Autumn 2022 regular charitable giving, we have donated £500 to their Social Supermarket to support their work. https://thefeed.org.uk/our-projects/socsup
Blend Associates Limited seeks to live its values as it works with its clients and in how we run our business. We want to BE the DIFFERENCE by making regular donations to the charities who are on the front line of helping those on need. This is how we show our KINDNESS by seeking to raise others up as we rise ourselves.
As part of living our values, we select charities which align with our values.
A growing number of students are arriving at local school without breakfast. It is proven that starting the day hungry can have a real effect on concentration and behaviour.
Not every family can currently provide breakfast for their children. This has been made worse by Covid and the cost of living pressures across the UK. Blend has made a charitable donation of £250 to support this local school. The school local to of our Headquarters. This donation supports our values of KINDNESS to our neighbours and ENABLING children to concentrate and learn in a local school.
Megan our newest member of the blend team is taking on a 100k walk in support of the charity. This charity helps women to get help early if they think they may be at risk of breast cancer. Blend has made a donation of £250 to this campaign as part of our Passover, Easter and Ramadan giving as we know too many women who are suffering breast cancer right now.
The British Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal
The British Red Cross is the UK’s largest provider of services for refugees, asylum seekers, vulnerable migrants and survivors of trafficking.
Our policy and advocacy work helps make sure people seeking protection in the UK are treated fairly and with dignity. You can stand with us for refugees by joining our Every Refugee Matters community.
As part of the international Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, we support people who are forced to flee their homes overseas.
Together, we help people find safe and legal routes to new countries and provide essential aid. We also support survivors of trafficking in the UK and other countries.
British-Ukrainian Aid
https://british-ukrainianaid.org/
They are committed to providing immediate, direct support to individuals as well as building long-term support for the future.
They establish the most suitable venues for the provision of rehabilitation treatment in each individual case. For example, using the database of information obtained with the help of our local volunteers in Ukraine, we transfer funds directly to the individuals in need of medical help and organisations caring for them:
- we cover the cost of their rehabilitation treatment;
- we cover the cost of their medication;
- we buy prosthetics or any other specialised equipment;
- we arrange consultations with British specialists on medical treatment and psychological rehabilitation;
- we send medical and humanitarian aid to Ukraine.
Our list of projects is continually evolving as we learn from the individuals about the support they need in the long-term.
2021 Charity Support
East Anglian Air Ambulance
https://www.justgiving.com/eaaa
We donated to EAAA because they are based in Norwich Like us and our staff have really valued the lifesaving provided by their onboard medic. Earlier this year a fellow cricketer needed help in an emergency during a match. Their attendance ENABLED the players heart to restart, and he is now recovered.
Refugee Women Connect
Website: https://www.refugeewomenconnect.org.uk
Instagram: @refugeewomenconect
We donated to Refugee Women Connect Fundraiser. Our previous Business and Operations Manager, Niamh and a couple of her peers were be able waking part in a 21-mile walk, which is the length of the channel, and the length of a journey that 8,000 asylum seekers make each year. The proceeds will help Refugee Women Connect continue their life changing work to support woman asylum seekers, refugees, and survivors of trafficking.
UNICEF
Website: https://www.unicef.org.uk
Instagram: @UNICEF
We have donated to UNICEF, who are helping to deliver 2 billion COVID-19 vaccines by the end of the year, and with over 70 years’ experience, we believe they can realistically achieve this. UNICEF’s mission is to help deliver 2 billion COVID-19 vaccines, in over 290 countries. They also aimed to donate over 900 million test kits globally, and over 165 million covid treatments.
The Matthew Project
Website: www.matthewproject.org
Instagram: @tmpyoungpeople
The Matthew Project is a charity based in Norfolk, who directly support an average of 1,200 people per year through a variety of sessions and programmes that help individuals in difficult situations, begin to start their next chapter of life. Our donation was able to fund over eight sessions of one-to-one counselling for two young people struggling with substance misuse issues from their unity services.
Street League
Street League are a charity who give young people a way out of poverty and help them to overcome practical and personal barriers to employment, and give young people a second change, and enable them to develop a sense of belonging to build a better future. Just `3100 will cover the cost for four young people to attend street football or dance fitness sessions for a year, where they will get fit, have fun, make friends and gain important work skills like teamwork, leadership and confidence.
Website: www.streetleague.co.uk
Instagram: @streetleagueuk
2020 Charities
FareShare
Website: https://fareshare.org.uk/
Instagram: @fareshareuk
FareShare are a national charity who are trying to combat food poverty and food waste. They are doing this by redistributing unwanted and surplus food to around 11,000 charities and communities who then deliver the food to people in need. FareShare have 22 hubs located around the UK and are seeking to expand their warehouse spaces, owing to a growing demand since the covid-19 pandemic began, which is why they need more support now than ever.
Since the covid-19 pandemic crisis began, FareShare have seen the demand for their service triple, with 850 new charities signing up to their service between March and May.
Blend donated the equivalent of 2,000 meals to sponsor FareShare in the vital work they are doing and believe that this charity is striving to make the world a better place.
St George’s Society of New York
Website: https://www.stgeorgessociety.org/
Instagram: @sgs_ny
St George’s Society of New York (SGSNY), which is 250 years old, is based in New York, USA and their aim is aid disadvantaged people within the British and Commonwealth community in New York and runs three core programmes:
The Beneficiary Program provides financial support for elderly people in the community as homelessness in the elderly is on the rise in the USA as housing costs increase.
The Scholarship Program provides financial support to students who are academically able but need financial and mentor support to complete their degrees.
The Family Support Fund provides financial aid to families who have travelled to New York to seek paediatric cancer treatment. Along with financial aid, SGSNY provide support by greeting families at the airport and assisting them on their first visits to the hospital.
The charity continues to adjust its work since the covid-19 pandemic hit New York, SGSNY set up the Phone Pal initiative which paired up volunteer callers with elderly beneficiaries who were isolated.
Blend has a partnership with SGSNY as Amanda our Founder, coaches the charity Executive Director and is a mentor for an undergraduate, Sheavonnie who was part of the Scholarship Programme. Sheavonnie starts at Marshall University in August 2020 and Amanda will continue to offer mentoring support as she moves on in her education.